14 movies that should sell at Toronto

By Lucas Shaw NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Filmmakers like Alfonso Cuaron and Spike Jonze enter the Toronto Film Festival with a simple question: Will audiences like their movie? Filmmakers like Matthew Weiner and Eli Roth enter the festival with a follow-up question: Will audiences like it enough for someone to buy it? Weiner and Roth are among those entering the festival with finished films — but no distributors. All are in the hunt for a deal, but only a select few can feel certain they will get one. TheWrap spoke with buyers, sellers, agents and other interested parties to find out which films are the most likely ones to get a deal at Toronto. Here are the choices repeated by many: BAD WORDS Director: Jason Bateman Cast: Bateman, Allison Janney, Rachael Harris Sales Agent: CAA Bateman has already made the jump from a TV actor who lands supporting roles in films to a movie star with a successful producing career to boot. Now he turns his focus to directing. CAN A SONG SAVE YOUR LIFE? Director: Joe Carney Cast: Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Hailee Steinfeld, Catherine Keener Sales Agent: CAA, UTA Every buyer and seller listed this as one of the titles with the most commercial potential — even rival sales agents. Knightley stars as an aspiring singer who breaks up with her boyfriend and turns to a producer (Mark Ruffalo) to boost her career. Carney already demonstrated his skill with music-driven films on "Once," an Irish musical that won an Academy Award for Best Song. DEVIL'S KNOT Director: Atom Egoya Cast: Reese Witherspoon, Colin Firth, Bruce Greenwood, Mireille Enos Sales Agent: CAA, WME Egoyan's film is based on the story of the West Memphis Three, a troika of teenage boys wrongfully imprisoned for murder. Though few expect the movie to ever reach a wide audience, the cast alone is enough to get a deal, and the tale's resonance in Hollywood gives it a huge leg up in securing a distributor. Everyone from Johnny Depp to Margaret Cho got involved in the case before the men were released from prison in 2011, and Peter Jackson already produced a documentary. FADING GIGOLO Director: John Turturro Cast: John Turturro, Woody Allen, Vanessa Paradis, Liev Schreiber, Sharon Stone, Sofia Vergar Sales Agent: ICM It's been seven years since Turturro last directed a film, and that movie, "Romance and Cigarettes," received mixed reviews. Yet some distributors are bound to be interested given the popularity of Turturro and an impressive cast. THE GREEN INFERNO Director: Eli Roth Cast: Lorenza Izzo, Ariel Levy, Sky Ferreira, Daryl Sabara Sales Agent: CAA (domestic), Exclusive Media (international) Roth first stunned Toronto audiences with "Cabin Fever," a movie one executive described as the "gold standard" for horror films at the festival. With Roth returning from a lengthy directing hiatus, everyone expects "Green Inferno" will be a highlight of the Midnights section. HORNS Director: Alexandrea Aja Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Juno Temple Sales Agent: WME Radcliffe returns to the world of the supernatural in this thriller about a man accused of raping and murdering his girlfriend; he uses his newfound paranormal abilities to track down the real killer. Radcliffe proved his marketability on the scarier side of the supernatural with "The Woman in Black" and Aja directed the revolting yet successful "Piranha 3D" and "The Hills Have Eyes." JOE Director: David Gordon Green Cast: Nicolas Cage, Tye Sheridan Sales Agent: CAA Cage stars as an ex-con who earns a chance at redemption by mentoring a teenage boy (Sheridan). While Gordon Green has not made a commercial film since "Pineapple Express," teaming with Cage could make this a popular title for companies looking to score big on video on demand. THE LAST OF ROBIN HOOD Director: Richard Glatzer, Wash Westmoreland Cast: Kevin Kline, Dakota Fanning, Susan Sarandon Sales Agent: Cinetic Media Though in need of a title change, this project about the final days of Hollywood star Errol Flynn checks several boxes for Hollywood. It is self-referential, depicts the price of stardom and features three prominent actors. LIFE OF CRIME Director: Daniel Schechter Cast: Jennifer Aniston, Tim Robbins, Isla Fisher, John Hawkes, Mos Def Sales Agent: CAA, WME Aniston just reminded people of her box office viability with "We're the Millers" and everyone will want a taste of this Elmore Leonard adaptation after the recent death of the beloved author. Toss in an Oscar winner (Robbins), Oscar nominee (Hawkes) and a couple of sexy castmates (Def and Fisher) and this movie just needs to be decent to get a deal. THE LOVE PUNCH Director: Joel Hopkins Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Emma Thompson, Timothy Spall, Tuppence Middleton Sales Agent: WME Brosnan and Thompson play a divorced couple who plot to recover some stolen money. The last time Hopkins teamed with Thompson and a reputable actor (the more dour Dustin Hoffman in "Last Chance Harvey"), the movie made $32 million — a hefty sum for a Toronto title. THE RAILWAY MAN Director: Jonathan Teplitzky Cast: Colin Firth, Nicole Kidman, Jeremy Irvine, Stellan Skarsgard Sales Agent: CAA Can you see a movie with these two stars going straight to VOD? THIRD PERSON Director: Paul Haggis Cast: Mila Kunis, Olivia Wilde, James Franco, Liam Neeson Sales Agent: CAA, Paradigm An Oscar-winning director makes a movie about interlocking love stories that stars three of the most attractive people on the planet and Liam Neeson? Yeah, buyers are interested. UNDER THE SKIN Director: Jonathan Glazer Cast: Scarlett Johnasson, Paul Brannigan Sales Agent: WME, CAA Johansson taking on science fiction is enticing enough that any distributor knows it can make some money back if it integrates VOD into the release strategy. YOU ARE HERE Director: Matthew Weiner Cast: Owen Wilson, Zach Galifianakis Sales Agent: ICM, CAA So what if only a few million people watch "Mad Men"? It's one of the most talked about shows on TV, a critical darling and a shoo-in for the TV pantheon. The mere involvement of its creator (Weiner) will earn this movie an avalanche of press attention and a nice deal.